title: Postresuscitation treatment with argon improves early neurological recovery in a porcine model of cardiac arrest.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Effects of postresuscitation treatment with argon on neurologic recovery were investigated in a porcine model of cardiac arrest (CA) with an underlying acute myocardial infarction.
  
  
  METHODS
  The left anterior descending coronary artery was occluded in 12 pigs, and CA was induced. After 8 min of untreated CA, cardiopulmonary resuscitation was performed for 5 min before defibrillation. Following resuscitation, animals were subjected to 4-h ventilation with 70% argon/30% oxygen or 70% nitrogen/30% oxygen. Myocardial function was echocardiographically assessed, and serum neuron-specific enolase was measured. Animals were observed up to 72 h for assessment of survival and neurologic recovery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All the animals were resuscitated and survived for 72 h, except for a control pig. Ventilation with argon did not have any detrimental effects on hemodynamics and respiratory gas exchange. All the six argon-treated animals had a fast and complete 72-h neurologic recovery, in contrast to only two of the six controls (P < 0.05). Seventy-two-hour neurologic alertness score and neurologic deficit score were, respectively, 100 and 0 in the argon group and 79 and 29 in the control one (P < 0.01 and P < 0.05). Significantly lower increases in serum neuron-specific enolase (12% vs. 234%) and minimal histological brain injury (neuronal degeneration: 0 vs. 1) were also observed in argon-treated animals, in comparison to controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this model, postresuscitation treatment with argon allowed for a faster and complete neurologic recovery, without detrimental effects on hemodynamics and respiratory gas exchanges.
authors.affiliation: *IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri," Milan; †Ospedale Maggiore, Bologna; ‡Polo Veterinario di Lodi, §University of Milan, ∥Fondazione Filarete, and ¶Endocrininology Laboratory, Luigi Sacco Hospital, Milan, Italy; and **Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Aachen University, Germany.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ristagno
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fumagalli
authors.forename: Ilaria
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Russo
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tantillo
authors.forename: Davide Danilo
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Zani
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Locatelli
authors.forename: Marcella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Maglie
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Novelli
authors.forename: Lidia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Staszewsky
authors.forename: Tarcisio
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vago
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Belloli
authors.forename: Mauro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Di Giancamillo
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fries
authors.forename: Serge
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Masson
authors.forename: Eugenio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Scanziani
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Latini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001128:Argon / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D016887:Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical / Q000379:methods; D006323:Heart Arrest / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000502:physiology; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D018696:Neuroprotective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D034421:Sus scrofa; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D018696:Neuroprotective Agents; D001128:Argon